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I think it is fairly inevitable that the United States and most other industrialized countries will implement carbon taxes within the next ten to twenty years.

A carbon tax can make wind, solar, geothermal, and energy efficiency even more competitive than they are now. It could transform our economy and, if done properly, stop climate change. It would reward today's green pioneers with money which would encourage them and impress their friends.

While a carbon tax is better than a cap and trade system, it has numerous short-comings.

There are currently two very different views regarding what is going on with the Philadelphia property tax reform Actual Value Initiative (AVI). At stake is the largest tax reform in recent Philadelphia history and hundreds of millions of dollars.

The Office of Property Assessment and local real-estate expert Kevin Gillen argue that the new assessments are more accurate and more progressive than the old ones.

The Controller's Office argues that new assessments are less accurate and less progressive than the old ones.

1. Tofurky Italian Sausage.
While their fake turkey product gets very mixed reviews, their fake sausage is amazing! Trader Joes sells Italian Sausage for $2.99.
I pan fry it. It is great for summer grilling! It goes well by itself or in pasta. There are several other varieties that are carried by Whole Foods and other stores.

I've written a web application that lets you analyze the impact of various Philadelphia property tax rates. You can choose the rate, a homestead exemption, and select a number of property value categories. You can analyze residential and other property types (commercial, industrial, stores with dwellings, etc).

It shows who gains/loses from property tax reform by property value as well as the overall shift of taxation from commercial to residential (and to stores with dwellings).

I recently got back into shortwave radio after staying away due to the horrible urban RFI situation. I previously used a Drake R8 original. That was a great radio, but having a software defined radio is a vastly different experience.

Mayor Nutter's proposal would cost over a hundred thousand households that rent in Philadelphia $50-$200/year.

How can these households be helped?

1. A Lower Property Tax Rate
If the city stops transferring part of the overall tax burden from commercial and industrial properties to residential, then the rate would be lower. However, if we want to reduce the tax rate enough for people renting houses that are worth around $80,000 - then we actually need to not only stop this transfer but reverse it. We probably need to get the rate down to 1%.